Flora’s Guide to a Second Chance at Love and Life

As soon as the words left her lips, Lola's face clouded over with a stormy glare. Was everything she'd just said a complete waste of breath? Was Yvenne just messing with her?

"What are you trying to say?" Lola scoffed, her tone shifting to something more serious, with a hint of mockery. "What do you think this partnership is all about?"

"Lola, we could have a civilized chat, but your terms are a bit hard to swallow," Yvenne replied, doing her best impersonation of Fiona's usual cool and nonchalant demeanor, hoping to leave an impression on Lola. Maybe, just maybe, she'd throw Lola off her game.

Back in their school days, Fiona's icy stares had always given Yvenne the chills.

"I'm not negotiating with you," Lola said, flinging the contract onto the table, making it clear she didn't see Yvenne as a serious player. Who did this young upstart think she was, challenging her like this? Did she really believe she was somebody important?noveldrama

Did she think she could just refuse to sign this contract? Did she even know who held the power in the design world? If it weren't for Yvenne's undeniable design talent, Lola wouldn't have bothered to approach her at all. What right did she have to act so high and mighty?

"If you don't sign this contract today, I can assure you that no one in New York will dare to hire you."

Yvenne immediately grasped the gravity of the situation and sat up straight. "What do you mean?"

"I've done my homework. You and Fiona were rivals back at Westbrook High School. Now, everyone at Maple Grove knows Fiona is Mr. Jackson's favorite. If I let Mr. Jackson know, who in Maple Grove would dare to sign you?"

Yvenne shot to her feet, glaring daggers at the woman opposite her. "You're threatening me?"

"Absolutely," Lola replied, without a hint of hesitation.

Yvenne was fuming, but she was cornered. Just like Lola had said, if Jackson got involved, she wouldn't last in New York. Plus, all her designs were copied from Fiona.

"I won't sign with you, but I can give you thirty design drafts over the next three months. You pay me five million dollars for a buyout. How's that?"

Yvenne's goal was to avoid getting caught for plagiarizing Fiona's work. If they bought her out, it would change everything. Even if someone found out, she'd have enough. money to move abroad where no one could find her.

"Thirty drafts? Your designs aren't worth that much," Lola shot back, then added, "I can offer you a million, but they must be original, hand-drawn by you, and never published before. Otherwise, there's no deal."

After mulling it over, Yvenne realized that a million, combined with her savings, would be enough for her future. So she agreed right away.

Once Jackson was back from the hospital, the chaos within the Woods family finally settled down. The one who had grown the most during this time was Nash. While Jackson and Kimberly were away, Nash had to juggle managing the rest of the Woods family and gathering intel.

"Jackson, here's the info Fiona asked me to collect," Nash said, handing over a hefty stack of

documents to Jackson, who wamet

seated in the study. "But these are decades-old secrets of the Woods family. How did Fiona even know about them?"

Nash muttered under his breath, even he hadn't been aware of these secrets.